Is anyone else struggling at the moment?

[hugsandpugs]

Feeling so fed up of struggling week to week and trying to stretch money to cover all the things that need to be paid out.

We currently only have husbands income coming in as I’m out of work due to migraines.

On average our monthly income is around £2,200 including child benefit and though it may sound a lot we are currently dipping into the tiny bit of savings we have just to get by!

There is 5 of us - me,hubby and 3 children & the food shopping alone crucifies us! We are lucky that our mortgage cost is fairly low but the rise in everything else is meaning every month is a struggle.

Just want to know I’m not alone 😣

I know it really is such a struggle month to month. I try and do the best I can - buying gift cards from cashback apps etc so we get a little back from essential spends.

I had bloods done a few months ago last and I think ferritin levels were 50? I think they said all my bloods were within normal range. I could ask to be referred to a specialist who deals with migraines but I imagine there is a long waiting list as there is with most things on the NHS now

I’m not on any contraception as my partner has had a vasectomy.

My migraines are definitely more severe around my time of the month though.

The holidays could be credit, the parents could be cutting back elsewhere to afford it. And they likely have two incomes.

You will get through this x

I haven’t no, I had some tests done and seen a neurologist for an issue I had some years ago with various symptoms. They initial thought I had symptoms of MS, done brain scans lumbar puncture etc and concluded migraines were the cause of the symptoms I was suffering with at the time. I’m still yet to identify all my triggers though I do know what some are now - some are easier to avoid than others. Changes in weather can trigger them but that’s not something I can control or change

He could but he works 40 hour weeks as it is and I feel that would be asking too much of him to do that regularly alongside his current job.

He has had a couple of painting jobs that he’s done recently on the weekends which have helped a bit but it’s not a regular thing

Sorry to hear your in a similar situation. Good idea though with asking your mum to pay for the car service as a pressie, at least it’s something you actually need I guess. Even though it would be much nicer to have something for you x

Yes we do get a bit of UC, I’m currently handing in fit notes from the docs but until I get assessed by the health advisory service I’m not entitled to any extra money for LCW

I can definitely speak to him about this. I’m sure he’s got his own plastering tools. He’s got quite a lot of experience in it now as he learnt it when he was quite young. The only thing is he doesn’t have the qualifications to prove it as he was trained by another plasterer he knew years ago. Thank you for this suggestion 😊

I had assumed we can’t get council tax reduction as OH is in full time work? It’s something I will look into with our local council though as we are currently paying full council tax.

Oh I didn’t know there is social traffics for water energy and internet etc. Our water is on a meter so I’m not sure if that will affect any tariffs they offer but I can check. We are with EDF for our energy and SkY for internet so I will have a chat with them about social tariffs. Thank you so much.

I think you do but only if income is under 7,400 a year if I remember correctly

He could but I don’t want to put extra pressure on him when he’s already doing 40 hour weeks. He does take on any extra painting/plastering jobs that he can get locally though when they come about.

I haven’t applied for PIP mainly because I’ve read how much of a nightmare it is to get especially for conditions like migraines. Also hoping I can get into work at some point and that the migraines will decrease. I’m 38 so plenty of working years in me yet if I can get these migraines under control

Thanks for the suggestions.

I had looked into surveys before but was worried it was a scam and unsure what were reputable ones.

I do the gift card thing already but thanks so much for your help 😊

@Toastforthewin yes I get them probably 4/5 days on average per week at the moment tho some weeks are worst/better than others. Some are bearable so I can just about function with imigran, others completely floor me.

@Ilovemyshed isn't attendance allowance for pensioners? Or do you mean carers allowance?

@BooseysMom sorry to hear your in a similar situation. It’s so difficult isn’t it. Food & petrol is definitely so costly now! £50 a few years ago would have got a fairly decent amount of food where as now we are lucky if it’s two bags full!

@lydialucy so sorry to hear that. Hope you manage to find something better soon. Zero hour contracts are awful and I imagine very stressful not knowing how much money you’ll have from month to month

I don’t know if this helps ?? If you have 3 children and claim UC you can cap your water bill .
I don’t know how to do links but I’ve copied and pasted this .
If you have a water meter and receive qualifying benefits (such as Universal Credit or Child Tax Credit), you can cap your bills through the WaterSure scheme so you never pay more than the average household bill. In your area, you can also apply for the HelpU tariff, which caps total annual charges for low-income households. Dŵr Cymru Welsh Water +2

@hattie43 thank you. I just hope things do improve soon. I will sit down sometime and write everything down and see if there’s anywhere else I can make cutbacks in the meanwhile. Someone above has said I may be entitled to free school meals for all children soon so that will help a bit.

OH does take on extra work where possible. He’s currently undergoing some tests for suspected bowel cancer based on a positive fit test so hoping it’s not that and something else!

Thank you so much for this! I did ask them if we can change from a water meter to just a standard monthly charge when we first moved in but they said no once it’s installed you have to stay on a water meter! I’ll deffo look into this info you’ve sent thank you so much

@IFeelLikeChickenTonite thank you for the suggestion, I’ll definitely speak to OH about this. I know he does enjoy plastering too but just hope he would have enough work for it to be a steady income.

@crazycatladie thank you, i didn’t know about this. I will ask my doc

@Pickledonion1999 thanks so much for your suggestions. I am currently handing in fit notes but waiting still for an assessment before they will award me LCWRA. I’ve asked how long it will take til I hear about the assessment and they said they don’t know as it’s down to the health advisory service! Not very helpful.

I haven’t seen the increase yet but hopefully will soon. We are also having a deduction taken off our UC every month for an old tax credit overpayment.

Some months we get less UC than average because of the 5 weeks in a month thing and OH gets paid weekly.

I will carry on listing what I can on Vinted aswell to see what extra money I can get in that way. I know it’s not loads but every little helps I suppose!

I swapped sumatriptan nasal sprays for rizatriptan almost 20 years ago. If you are out of work because your migraines are so bad, you need to talk to your doctor about what they are prescribing.

what preventative are you on. I take topiramate. It’s a scorched earth kind of alternative and you 100% have to be done with childbearing, but if your husband had a vasectomy you are good there. You also have to take it perfectly or you get withdrawal headaches, but it saved me. None of the other preventatives I tried worked. Propranolol made me so jittery and gave me chest pain.

be the squeaky wheel. I don’t know which meds are right for you, but if you are out of work, your doctor needs to be working you up the ladder of options.

@TTCFTM2026 I am going to do some research into the council tax reduction to see if we can get any help with that.

I haven’t been awarded LCWRA yet as I’m still waiting for an assessment even though it’s been about 5 months now since I started sending in fit notes. Hopefully I hear something soon!

I’ve heard PIP is an absolute nightmare to get especially for migraines but could contact CAB to see if they can help at all with this.

thanks so much for your suggestions. I appreciate each and every one of you that has responded it means a lot

Also get migraines and the pill made them much worse - so did antidepressants so I can't take either. Just saying this incase OP is on either of these medications!

I’ll speak to them about whether there are other options to try that may work better. I tolerate sumatriptan well as I’m very sensitive to meds but with migraines taking them at the right time is of the essence. Taking it when it’s already started only ever takes the edge off and doesn’t stop it completely.

Preventatives currently that I’m using are a lower dose of Nortriptyline?

Yes deffo finished childbearing here! X

I think I’ve caught up with replying to all the messages now, so sorry if I’ve missed anyone as there’s been a lot to get through and respond to.

Want to say a huge thank you though to everyone who’s taken the time to respond and also to offer suggestions. It’s been really helpful and I appreciate you all 💕